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<title>Mayerling: Ballet Tales. by LadyWinnelynPooh</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25382962">Mayerling: Ballet Tales.</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyWinnelynPooh/pseuds/LadyWinnelynPooh'>LadyWinnelynPooh</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Ballets in novel form. [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Mayerling &amp; Related Fandoms</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>1880s, Alternate Universe - Victorian, Ballet, F/M, based on the version with Sarah Lamb and Steven McRae</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 11:27:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>746</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25382962</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyWinnelynPooh/pseuds/LadyWinnelynPooh</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The first of a series of ballets in novel form. </p><p>Mayerling is the tale of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and his affair with Mary Vetsera, and how it all ended in their suicide at his hunting lodge in Mayerling.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Mary Vetsera/Prince Rudolf, Rudolf von Österreich-Ungarn | Rudolf Crown Prince of Austria/Princess Stephanie</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Ballets in novel form. [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1838242</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Prologue.</p><p>The carriage arrived at the cemetery. Bratfisch stepped out, holding his hat. Today was the Prince's burial ceremony. He could easily remember the day that the Prince had married Princess Stephanie. How long ago that day seemed! And yet, it felt like yesterday....</p>
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<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Wedding</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Wedding</p><p>The priest concluded the ceremony, and with that Prince Rudolf of Austria-Hungary and Princess Stephanie of Belgium were wed. They were a lovely couple, the bride all in white with a lace veil.</p><p>Rudolf leaned forward to kiss his bride, all too quickly, and pulled away, giving her his arm, out of duty.</p><p>They left the chapel, and went to the ballroom, everyone following. </p><p>The Baroness Vetsera was one of those, with her young daughter, Mary. Mary had struck up a friendship with the Princess Gisela, who was about her age, and very nice. </p><p>''Don't you think my new sister in law is lovely?''</p><p>''Yes, I suppose so, Your Highness. She does not smile very much, does she?''</p><p>''Well, of course not. She will be Empress of the Holy Roman Empire one day, and a host of other things, and a future Empress must act the part.'' Princess Gisela replied primly, clasping her gloved hands.</p><p>Mary thought that the Prince was very handsome, and her mother's friend, the Countess Larisch, had promised that she would introduce her to him later. </p><p>''How does the Countess know the Prince? Are they friends? Does she move in the same court circles as him?'' she asked her mother afterwards.</p><p>The Baroness blushed, and said, ''They are friends of a sort. She knows him quite intimately.'' with an emphasis on the intimately. She said nothing more afterwards.</p><p>Ball part 1.</p><p>The ballroom was splendid, grand and full of light. </p><p>Stephanie was delighted when her husband asked her to dance with him, the first waltz of the night, considering he had been quite aloof when she had first met him. So they waltzed, which she hoped was a good sign. </p><p>Other couples joined them in waltzing, sweeping around the floor to the orchestra's playing.</p><p>The dance finished. And then her husband walked over to her sister Louise, who stood with her husband, and began to speak to her. </p><p>Being on the other side of the room, she could not make out what they were saying, but she could see the flush that crept across her sister's cheeks, and how her husband clenched his jaw. Her husband bowed to Louise, presumably asking her to dance. Being the Prince, Louise could not refuse. </p><p>He danced with her, a slow waltz, and Louise looked quite horrified at whatever the prince was saying to her, quietly, of course. When the dance finished, the Emperor gave his son a stern look, and Stephanie took his arm, before he turned and walked away.</p>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ball part 2.</p><p>After Rudolf danced once more with his wife, he left the ballroom, and went to another room, where four Hungarian officers were waiting for him.  </p><p>They began to speak to him, to argue that their country should be free. Rudolf sympathized with them, agreed with them. He said that he would speak to his father, try to persuade him to let Hungary be it's own country.</p><p>When Countess Larisch came into the room, the officers stood, bowed, and left.</p><p>''There you are.'' she said, trying to embrace him. He moved away, and the Countess's friend Baroness Vetsera came into the room with her daughter. ''Your highness,'' Countess Larisch said, ''you remember Baroness Vetsera, don't you?''</p><p>Rudolf nodded, and the Baroness curtsied. ''This is my daughter Mary, Your Highness.'' The Baroness gestured to her daughter. Her daughter showed signs of becoming a beauty, certainly. </p><p>''A pleasure, Your Highness.'' the girl said, curtseying. Her voice was soft, as a lady's should be. </p><p>The Countess ushered the Baroness off to the side, and Mary Vetsera glanced at her mother for a moment. ''Do you like to dance?'' she asked. ''You seemed so, well, unhappy.'' </p><p>Rudolf merely smiled. ''I was unhappy when I was dancing, true. But the reasons are best kept to myself.''  </p><p>''Would you dance with me?'' she asked. </p><p>He nodded. ''Very well.'' So they danced for a short while, and it was not long before Princess Gisela came running into the room, skirts flying behind her, and playfully jumped into her brother's arms. </p><p>''Gisela!'' he exclaimed, laughing. He set her down. ''Will you dance with me too?'' Gisela asked, smiling. Rudolf agreed, and began to dance with her.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
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